Waived Co-Pays for CCDF Families

Time period: March 28, 2021-April 30, 2022
Eligibility: Families must be attending an early care and education program with an active CCDF voucher.
Description: CCDF co-pays for families with active CCDF vouchers are being waived to provide temporary relief to families, while also reducing collection burdens for programs.
Click HERE to view the Reimbursement Schedule
Click HERE for resources to share the waived co-pay extension with families

Support Families as Copays Resume

For the past year, the state has supported families by waiving their CCDF copays. Waived CCDF family copays will end April 30, and programs should resume payment collection the week of May 2. Copay amounts for applicable CCDF families can be found in the provider portal at www.hoosierchildcare.com.

Use this toolkit now to begin communicating the upcoming transition to families. If your program charges overages, we encourage you to use your program’s Stabilization Grant dollars to help temporarily waive the overages and help families transition back to making their payments. If families have experienced a change in their financial situation that would impact their copayment amounts, please encourage them to connect with their CCDF Policy Consultant.

ACCESS THE TOOLKIT

What is a CCDF copayment?	A copayment is a weekly fee for child care based on the CCDF Household’s income exceeding 100% of the federal poverty guidelines and their years of CCDF participation, utilizing the Office’s Child Care Income Eligibility Determination and Sliding Fee Scale.
What is the difference between a copayment and an overage?	The child care provider can charge more than the maximum CCDF reimbursement rate. If this occurs, then the extra cost above is referred to as an “overage”. An overage is defined as the portion of a provider’s charges which exceed the applicable county CCDF Reimbursement Rate. Providers may or may not charge overages. Families should speak with their provider regarding any overages, as they are not covered by the CCDF program.
Why are copayments being waived for CCDF families?	Indiana is temporarily waiving CCDF co-pays to provide relief for families and added financial security for child care programs
How will families be notified that copays are being waived?	Families utilizing CCDF vouchers will receive email and text communications from the Office of Early Childhood and Out-of-School Learning, as well as notification through the CCDF family portal.
Are there resources available for programs to share the waived copay change with families?	Yes, programs will receive a support communication toolkit to share the change with enrolled CCDF families. Access that toolkit here. Additionally, CCDF families will be notified through email, text and CCDF parent portal notifications
Am I required to take action to begin receiving payments for my families' CCDF copays?	No. Programs will receive payment for waived family co-pays as part of their regularly scheduled bi-weekly CCDF payment beginning April 28, 2021.
How will programs receive a family's waived copayment?	Programs will receive payment for waived family co-pays as part of their regularly scheduled bi-weekly CCDF payment beginning April 28, 2021. For example, if a voucher’s full-time subsidy is normally $100 and the copay is $20, the state will reimburse the program $120 during the waived co-payment period. Please keep in mind, a child must have electronically documented attendance in order for the program to receive the co-payment. Also note: vouchers on the provider portal will still show the family co-payment during this waived copay period.
What happens if a program continues charging CCDF copayments during the waived period?	The program will be required to refund the co-pays to the family and pay back all co-payments made to them by the state. Follow-up by the program’s licensing consultant will also be initiated.
What should I do if I accidentally charged a family a copayment?	If you accidentally charge a family a co-payment, let the family know about the waived co-payments and refund them their co-payment.
Can I continue charging overages during the period of the waived CCDF copayments?	Yes, you may continue charging overages.
Can programs collect on past due copayment balances from before the waived period started	Providers are encouraged to use their normal collection process for the collection of any prior co-payments. The state will not reimburse for any co-payments prior to March 28, 2021.
How will families be notified when waived copays will end?	Programs and families will receive reminder communications beginning six weeks before co-pays are reenacted.
What will the CCDF voucher state during the waived copay period?	CCDF vouchers will not change during this program and will still show the parent co-payment amount.
How will families who are newly enrolling in CCDF during the waived copayment period be notified of their copayments beginning?	Families will receive reminder communications beginning six weeks before co-pays are reenacted.
Who should I contact with questions regarding waived copayments for CCDF families?	For questions, contact OECOSLproviderinquiry@fssa.IN.gov.